WESCCON 2021 will be held Oct 14-17, 2021 at Rancho Las Palmas Resort in Rancho Mirage CA.  SAVE THE DATE!!!  Details are avaiable at:
www.pacificcoastcouncil.org/wesccon
Registration is open.


 

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• P.A.E.I - Professional Association of Exporters and Importers
• www.paei.org.

• OWIT NC - Organization of Women in International Trade Check website for updates
• Monterey Bay International Trade Association (MBITA) - Monterey Bay International Trade Association
  Check Website for updates
• Norcal W.T.C. - The Northern CaliforniaWorld Trade Center
  Check Website for updates
• PTA. - Pacific Transportation Association Check Website for updates

Evey Hwang, Alba Wheel Up, CBFANC President

FMC Commission Carl Bentzel Attends Roundtable
On August 30, 2021, Oakland Port’s Executive Director Danny Wan and Maritime Director Bryan Brandes hosted FMC Commissioner Carl Bentzel and California State Transportation Secretary David Kim for what was an energetic and constructive discussion on maritime shipping challenges.  Representation included representatives  from Pacific Maritime Association, Pacific Merchant Shipper Association, FMC, Harbor Trucking Association, Almond Council,  the Governor’s office, Commerce Department and local Beneficial Cargo Owners.  CBFANC was represented by Association President Evey Hwang and Ocean Committee co-chair John Lee who is also a member of District Export Counsel.   


Roundtable discussions underway, above.

 

Sung Wook (John) Lee, SW Logisitics, pictured above, has been appointed as a member of the FMC's National Shipper Advisory Committee which will provide guidance for improving detention and demurrage practices.  CBFANC is honored to have a presence on the committee and we appreciate John's activism on behalf of the greater good.

It has been a while, and I don't remember a past occasion when the president of the United States mentioned the FMC in a executive order, but here it is.  https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/07/09/executive-order-on-promoting-competition-in-the-american-economy/
Those that look at the below executive order pertaining to the FMC, it is strictly about detention and demurrage. This in itself is pretty amazing that the WH is concerned about these storage charges. 
But if you read the whole executive order, and then read the FMC portion, then in this context you see a antitrust bent to the order and the Biden Administration is focusing his entire executive branch to this task.
What is this task? You may have heard it as the whole of government approach, you may have heard it as government for the middle class. You many have seen antitrust actions taken by the EU against social media companies such as Google and Facebook, you may even heard of China legislating how many hours a kid can play video games, and ban on tutors.
These events are all about corporations and addressing their power in their respective countries. Corporations with such power not only distort markets and industries, but also --and this is the important 'but'--they pose a threat to state power, or in the case of the US, could be anti-democratic, while in China it's considered a threat to the Communist Party’s control.


 

Chris Ramos, KSI International, CBFANC Airport and Commttee Chairman

Withhold Release Orders (WRO), Inbond Arrivals, Hand Carry Procedures among topics discussed
CBFANC hosted a very successful and informative outreach event with U.S. Customs, the brokers, and the carriers on August 11, 2021. The agenda consisted of a discussion regarding ACE/AMS and any issues the trade has been experiencing and any specific questions that needed to be addressed. Supervisor Frank Lew, along with officers from both Air and Sea ports, graciously made themselves available for this event. Some of the highlights are noted below.
 
 Withhold Release Order (WRO) – Customs is currently issuing WROs based on information that reasonably indicates the use of detainee or prison labor and situations of forced labor in manufacturing abroad. They are issuing 30 day detention notices, during which time the carriers are not allowed to send the goods to a G.O. warehouse. CBP is coordinating with brokers/importers for goods that require destruction or export.

Chris Kammer, Access Supply Solutions, CBFANC Exam Chairman
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is offering both a remote proctored and in-person Customs Broker License Exam (CBLE) delivery option for the Oct. 21 exam. Registration for both exams officially opened Aug. 23 and will close on Sept. 21.
For more information, visit the CBP Customs Broker License Examination page. CBP urges registrants to review all related information before deciding to register for either the remote proctored or in-person exam.
Questions regarding this notification may also be directed to the CBP Broker Management Branch, Office of Trade, at brokermanagement@cbp.dhs.gov. 
 

Sandra Alvarez, Flexport Customs LLC, CBFANC Legislative Chair

President Biden is very eager to reduce carbon emissions, nationally and globally; it was a major component of his platform, specifically to shift to electric vehicles and manufacturing. He also campaigned on an improved relationship with the European Union. Already we’ve rejoined the World Trade Organization, and the Paris Climate Accord, while President Biden has reached out to establish friendly relations with some European leaders.

Nonetheless, the European Union is still threatening a tough tax on US digital leaders (Google, Microsoft, Facebook, etc.), and a US-EU dispute over trade in batteries may be emerging. Without those batteries, the President’s promised emission reduction objectives could be stymied or delayed. This will play out in the coming months or years. But it demonstrates that intentions of better relations do not necessarily translate into sought-after policy changes.

 

The Alameda County Board of Supervisors announced they would not vote in September on the Oakland A's stadium, luxury condo, and office development at Howard Terminal— causing what the team says is a "potentially insurmountable" financial gap in getting the project done in Oakland. As you may recall, the A's attempted to pressure the County to support the idea of forming a tax district to finance the infrastructure needed for a ballpark and enormous mixed-use development without first providing critical public details of their project. At their June meeting, the Board of Supervisors sharply rebuked the city for not inviting them to the discussion sooner and deferred a vote until September at the earliest.
 

Mindy Li, Mega Brokers, CBFANC PGA Chair
FDA encourages the import community who deal in FDA regulated products to utilize FDA ITACS for current entry status and to receive Notice of Action electronically.  Review of documents submitted to FDA via ITACS is prioritized over review of documents submitted to FDA via other means. 
Here is the link ITACS | FDA
<https://www.fda.gov/industry/import-systems/itacs>  to request for ITACS account with Management functionality may be used by customs brokers, importer of record, and consignee with an approved ITACS account. .  It enables the electronic distribution of Notice of FDA Action via email and as downloads from within ITACS.  It also allows account holders to view the details of the specific information requests, versus delivery of hard copy Notices of FDA Actions. The applicant must have been a party to a previously transmitted, non-disclaimed FDA entry. The approval may take 2-3 business day or longer if additional info is needed, or reason of denial will be given.   



 

The current Officers & Directors are seeking member participation on the CBFANC Board of Directors. If you are a professional member of CBFANC and are interested in serving on the board of directors please ask another member to nominate you for the upcoming elections.
 
Nominations can be sent to info@CBFANC.org.

If you know a fellow CBFANC professional member who you think would be a great addition to the board of directors, contact that person and see if they would like you to submit a nomination in their favor to info@CBFANC.org.
 
Board terms are for three years. The board meets every month on a live video platform.

Now is your chance to help shape the future of our association.The election results will be announced in December 2021.

 

• 2021 Ocean Shipping Reform Act Introduced

Reps. John Garamendi (D-CA) and Dusty Johnson (R-SD) on Aug. 10 introduced the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2021 (OSRA 2021). If passed, the legislation would mark the first major update of federal regulations since 1998.

• Lobby for Customs Business Fairness Act!

CBFA was included in Section 1001 of Public Law 116-260 to protect customs brokers from an inequitable and inefficient aspect of the U.S. bankruptcy code. Section 1001 is scheduled to sunset at the end of the year and H.R. 4816 is a renewed effort to make it permanent. This change recognized that the customs broker has simply provided the funds to CBP on behalf of the importer and protected the broker from having to pay a bankruptcy court an amount that approximated duties paid to CBP.

 

Below are excerpts from a recent article published the EOSA:

Our coalition agrees with SB Nation contibutor Billy Frijoles, who wrote:  "The fans who are showing up despite covid fears and relocation threats deserve a lot better than they are getting right now. The players deserve to have more fans in the seats while trying to rally to the postseason after multiple setbacks. The team should make it easy, affordable, fun and accessible for the fans to return to games." 

At the Coliseum this season, the A's have raised prices for tickets, parking, and concessions and eliminated discount and loyalty membership opportunities for their fans.

An A’s fan told the SF Chronicle: "A’s fans who are still around, we’ve gotten used to heartbreak. We’ve formed a callus. You have to. ‘Rooted in Oakland’? We know that’s just a marketing slogan.” Another worries about A's "ownership continue to view the relationship with fans and the city as a transactional source of cash... [and] that they're going to price out longtime fans and replace them with the highest bidders.